US20140070688A1 - Refrigerator having sub door - Google Patents
Refrigerator having sub door Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20140070688A1 US20140070688A1 US14/083,002 US201314083002A US2014070688A1 US 20140070688 A1 US20140070688 A1 US 20140070688A1 US 201314083002 A US201314083002 A US 201314083002A US 2014070688 A1 US2014070688 A1 US 2014070688A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- sub door
- opening
- door
- connection member
- refrigerator
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
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Classifications
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- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
- F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- F25D23/00—General constructional features
- F25D23/02—Doors; Covers
- F25D23/04—Doors; Covers with special compartments, e.g. butter conditioners
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- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
- F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- F25D11/00—Self-contained movable devices, e.g. domestic refrigerators
- F25D11/006—Self-contained movable devices, e.g. domestic refrigerators with cold storage accumulators
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
- F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- F25D23/00—General constructional features
- F25D23/02—Doors; Covers
- F25D23/025—Secondary closures
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
- F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- F25D2303/00—Details of devices using other cold materials; Details of devices using cold-storage bodies
- F25D2303/08—Devices using cold storage material, i.e. ice or other freezable liquid
- F25D2303/085—Compositions of cold storage materials
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- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
- F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- F25D2323/00—General constructional features not provided for in other groups of this subclass
- F25D2323/02—Details of doors or covers not otherwise covered
- F25D2323/023—Door in door constructions
-
- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F25—REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES
- F25D—REFRIGERATORS; COLD ROOMS; ICE-BOXES; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- F25D2400/00—General features of, or devices for refrigerators, cold rooms, ice-boxes, or for cooling or freezing apparatus not covered by any other subclass
- F25D2400/06—Refrigerators with a vertical mullion
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- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
- Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
- Y10T29/00—Metal working
- Y10T29/49—Method of mechanical manufacture
- Y10T29/4935—Heat exchanger or boiler making
- Y10T29/49359—Cooling apparatus making, e.g., air conditioner, refrigerator
Definitions
- the frame 32 is obtained by injection molding using a resin material. As shown in FIG. 5 , the front panel 33 is attached to the edge of the front opening 37 , and the cooling unit 50 is attached to the edge of the rear opening 36 .
- Double-sided adhesive tapes or other adhesive materials are provided on the edges of the front opening 37 and the rear opening 36 , thereby fixing the front panel 33 and the cooling unit 50 to the frame 32 .
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- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
- Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Thermal Sciences (AREA)
- General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Refrigerator Housings (AREA)
Abstract
A refrigerator includes a main body provided with storage chambers having doors, one of the doors being provided with an opening, the opening having at least one stepped plane; a rack installed in the storage chamber at a height corresponding to that of the lower end of the opening; a sub door to open and close the opening; and a connection member to prevent a height difference between a rear surface of the sub door and the opening. The connection member is configured to slide relative to the sub door to cover the at least one stepped plane, whereby the connection member closes the at least one stepped plane when the sub door is closed, and opens the at least one stepped plane when the sub door is opened so that the rear surface of the sub door and the connection member form substantially a level plane with the rack.
Description
- This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/805,918 filed on Aug. 24, 2010, which claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2009-0101910, filed on Oct. 26, 2009 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
- 1. Field
- Embodiments relate to a refrigerator having a sub door which is installed on a main door so as to allow articles stored in a storage chamber to be withdrawn without opening of the main door and serves as a homebar door.
- 2. Description of the Related Art
- In general, a refrigerator is an apparatus which stores frozen food and refrigerated food in a fresh state within storage chambers by controlling temperatures of the storage chambers by circulating cool air generated from a refrigerating cycle.
- Doors to open and close the storage chambers rotated forwards are installed on a main body of such a refrigerator, and a homebar door (hereinafter, referred to as a sub door), through which articles stored in the storage chambers is withdrawn to the outside without opening of the doors, or, which is horizontally supported when the sub door is opened such that the stored articles are temporarily mounted on the sub door, is provided on the doors.
- The conventional refrigerator having the sub door includes a receipt space provided on the rear surface of the door of the refrigerator and communicated with the outside through an opening formed through the door, the sub door installed at the opening such that the front end of the sub door is vertically rotatable about the lower end of the sub door so as to selectively open and close the receipt space, and stoppers provided on both side surfaces of the opening and supporting the lower ends of both sides of the rear surface of the sub door under the condition that the opening is opened so as to restrict the range of rotation of the sub door.
- The above conventional refrigerator generates heat loss at the sub door, thus increasing energy loss compared with a refrigerator without a sub door. Further, the temperature of a portion around the sub door at the inside of the storage chamber is relatively high, and thus storage performance of the refrigerator is lowered.
- Therefore, it is an aspect to provide a refrigerator having a sub door which reduces energy loss.
- It is another aspect to provide a refrigerator having a sub door which improves storage performance of a storage chamber.
- It is a further aspect to provide a refrigerator having a sub door which transmits cool air to a stored article, if the sub door is opened and the article is placed on the opened sub door.
- Additional aspects will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.
- In accordance with one aspect, a refrigerator includes a main body provided with storage chambers formed therein, doors opening and closing the storage chambers, and provided with an opening, a sub door to open and close the opening, and a cooling unit provided on the rear surface of the sub door.
- The cooling unit may be made of a metal having a high heat capacity.
- The cooling unit may be made of stainless steel.
- The cooling unit may include a cold storage pack containing a liquid material, the phase of which is changeable.
- The refrigerator may further include a rack installed in the storage chambers at a height corresponding to that of the lower end of the opening, and a connection member to prevent a height difference between the rear surface of the sub door and the opening when the sub door is opened.
- The connection member may slide on the rear surface of the sub door based on opening and closing of the sub door.
- The cooling unit may include a first stepped plane, and a second stepped plane lower than the first stepped plane, and the connection member may slide relative to the sub door and thus close the second stepped plane, when the sub door is closed, and may slide relative to the sub door and thus open the second stepped plane, when the sub door is opened.
- The refrigerator may be a kimchi refrigerator to store kimchi.
- The storage chambers provided in plural number may be vertically divided from each other, and the sub door may be provided on the door to open and close the upper storage chamber out of the plural storage chambers.
- The storage chambers provided in plural number may be horizontally divided from each other, the number of the doors may be equal to the number of the storage chambers, and the sub door may be provided on at least one door of the doors.
- The sub door may have a width corresponding to that of the doors.
- In accordance with another aspect, a refrigerator includes a main body provided with storage chambers formed therein, doors opening and closing the storage chambers, and provided with an opening, and a sub door has a width corresponding to that of the doors so as to open and close the opening, wherein the sub door includes a first plane contacting the edge of the opening, a second plane protruded from the first plane and inserted into the opening, and a cooling unit provided on the second plane and made of a material having a higher heat capacity of an injection molded product.
- In accordance with a further aspect, a manufacturing method of a sub door to open and close an opening of a door of a refrigerator includes preparing a frame having a size corresponding to the opening, and provided with front and rear openings on the front and rear surfaces thereof, fixing a front panel forming the front surface of the sub door to the edge of the front opening of the frame, fixing a cooling unit made of a material having a higher heat capacity than an injection molded product to the rear opening of the frame, and filling the inside of the sub door formed by the frame, the front panel, and the cooling unit with a foamed material so as to attach the frame, the front panel, and the cooling unit to each other by means of the foamed material.
- The fixing of the front panel to the edge of the front opening of the frame may be achieved by attaching the front panel to the edge of the front opening using a double-sided adhesive tape.
- The fixing of the cooling unit to the rear opening of the frame may be achieved by attaching the cooling unit to the edge of the rear opening using a double-sided adhesive tape
- These and/or other aspects will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:
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FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a refrigerator in accordance with one embodiment; -
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main door of the refrigerator in accordance with the embodiment, from which a sub door is separated; -
FIG. 3 is a longitudinal-sectional view of the refrigerator in accordance with the embodiment, illustrating the sub door in a closed state; -
FIG. 4 is a longitudinal-sectional view of the refrigerator in accordance with the embodiment, illustrating the sub door in an opened state; -
FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the sub door illustrating a manufacturing method of the sub door in accordance with the embodiment; and -
FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a refrigerator in accordance with another embodiment. - Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.
- Hereinafter, a refrigerator in accordance with one embodiment will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
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FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a refrigerator in accordance with one embodiment,FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main door of the refrigerator in accordance with the embodiment, from which a sub door is separated, andFIG. 3 is a longitudinal-sectional view of the refrigerator in accordance with the embodiment, illustrating the sub door in a closed state. -
FIG. 4 is a longitudinal-sectional view of the refrigerator in accordance with the embodiment, illustrating the sub door in an opened state, andFIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the sub door illustrating a manufacturing method of the sub door in accordance with the embodiment. - The refrigerator in accordance with this embodiment, as shown in
FIG. 1 , includes amain body 10, the inside of which is divided intostorage chambers storage chambers main body 10 include anupper storage chamber 11, acentral storage chamber 12, and alower storage chamber 13, which are vertically divided from each other. First to thirdstorage chamber doors respective storage chambers main body 10. - The
main body 10 is formed in a box shape filled with a urethane foamed material, and a machinery chamber (not shown) in which various electric components are installed is provided at a rear region of the lower portion of themain body 10. Components of a refrigerating cycle, such as a compressor (not shown), a condenser (not shown) to condense a refrigerant in a high-temperature and high-pressure state discharged from the compressor, and a control box (not shown), are installed in the machinery chamber in the same manner as a conventional refrigerator. - The refrigerator in accordance with this embodiment may be an indirect type refrigerator in which an evaporator (not shown) is installed at the rear portion of a storage chamber to supply cool air, heat-exchanged with the evaporator, to the storage chamber, or may be a direct type refrigerator in which a refrigerant pipe of an evaporator is wound on the external surface of a storage chamber to supply heat of the evaporator directly to the storage chamber.
- A configuration of such a refrigerating cycle is well known in general, and a detailed description thereof will thus be omitted.
- The first
storage chamber door 20, the secondstorage chamber door 14, and the thirdstorage chamber door 15 are respectively provided on the front surfaces of the first tothird storage chambers storage chamber door 20 is hinged to themain body 10 and is rotated to open and close thefirst storage chamber 11, and the second and thirdstorage chamber doors main body 10 and are slid to open and close the second andthird storage chambers - A plurality of
racks first storage chamber 11 to efficiently and separably store various articles is disposed in thefirst storage chamber 11. Asub door 30 to allow stored articles to be withdrawn without opening of the firststorage chamber door 20, which opens and closes anopening 11 a of thefirst storage chamber 11, is provided in front of onestorage space 17 of storage spaces divided from each other by theplural racks - The
lower rack 16 c maintains a height about equal to that of the height of the rear surface of thesub door 30 when thesub door 30 is opened, thereby enabling articles stored in thestorage space 17 to be easily withdrawn. - The
sub door 30 serves to enable the articles stored in thefirst storage chamber 11 to be withdrawn without opening of the firststorage chamber door 20. An opening 21 having a size corresponding to thesub door 30 is formed through the firststorage chamber door 20 so as to allow thestorage space 17 formed by theracks sub door 30 is opened. - A stepped
part 22 wider than the opening 21 by a designated width is provided at the edge of the front portion of the opening 21. - Hinge
holes 22 a to rotatably fix thesub door 30 are formed at the lower portions of the side surfaces of thestepped part 22, and ahook insertion hole 22 b to allow thesub door 30 to be opened and closed is formed on the upper portion of thestepped part 22. The rear surface portion of thesub door 30 is formed in a size and a shape corresponding to theopening 21, and the front surface portion of thesub door 30 is formed in a size corresponding to thestepped part 22. -
Hinge protrusions 31 a corresponding to thehinge holes 22 a of thestepped part 22 are formed on the lower ends of the side surfaces of thesub door 30, and ahook 31 b corresponding to thehook insertion hole 22 b is formed on the upper portion of the rear surface of thesub door 30 so as to allow thesub door 30 to be opened and closed. - The
sub door 30 is vertically rotated to be opened and closed. When thesub door 30 is opened, thesub door 30 is supported in the horizontal direction and functions as a rack on which food is placed. - The
sub door 30 is hinged to the steppedpart 22, and the upper end of thesub door 30 is rotated about the lower end of thesub door 30, thereby opening and closing theopening 21. - The
sub door 30, as shown inFIG. 5 , includes aframe 32 provided with closed upper, lower, left, and right surfaces andopenings front panel 33 closing thefront opening 37 of theframe 32 and forming the front surface of thesub door 30, a coolingunit 50 closing therear opening 36 of theframe 32 and made of a material having a higher heat capacity than theframe 32 made of an injection molded product, and a connection member 40 (with reference toFIG. 2 ) slidably provided on the rear surface of thesub door 30 to prevent a height difference between theopening 21 and the rear surface of thesub door 30 when thesub door 30 is opened. - For example, the
front panel 33 is made of tempered glass printed with a decorative pattern. Further, thefront panel 33 may be made of metal or other materials. - The
frame 32 is obtained by injection molding using a resin material. As shown inFIG. 5 , thefront panel 33 is attached to the edge of thefront opening 37, and thecooling unit 50 is attached to the edge of therear opening 36. - Double-sided adhesive tapes or other adhesive materials are provided on the edges of the
front opening 37 and therear opening 36, thereby fixing thefront panel 33 and thecooling unit 50 to theframe 32. - A foamed material fills the
above sub door 30, thereby forming a heat insulating layer. - Further, the
frame 32 includes afirst plane 34 contacting the steppedpart 22 of theopening 21, and asecond plane 35 protruded from thefirst plane 34 and inserted into theopening 21. - The
connection member 40 is disposed on the lower portion of the rear surface of thesub door 30 such that theconnection member 40 is vertically slidable. A pair of bendingparts 41 which is bent downwardly so as to surround the rear surface of thesub door 30 is formed on both sides of theconnection member 40, and guideprotrusions 42 to guide the sliding movement of theconnection member 40 relative to the rear surface of thesub door 30 are provided on the inner surfaces of the upper portions of the bendingparts 41. - Guide holes 31 c elongated to guide the rectilinear movement of the
guide protrusions 42 of theconnection member 40 are provided on both sides of the rear surface of thesub door 30. - Rotating
protrusions 43 to rotatably fix theconnection member 40 are formed on the outer surfaces of the lower portions of the bendingparts 41 of theconnection member 40. Rotatingholes 21 a corresponding to therotating protrusions 43 are formed at the lower portions of both side surfaces of theopening 21. - Therefore, when the
sub door 30 is vertically rotated, theconnection member 40 is vertically rotated in connection with the rotation of thesub door 30, and performs a vertical sliding movement relative to the rear surface of thesub door 30. - The cooling
unit 50 may be a coolingplate 51 made of a metal panel having a higher heat capacity than the resin material. For example, the coolingplate 51 is made of stainless steel. - The cooling
plate 51 is mounted on thesecond plane 35 of theframe 32, and is exposed to the outside. - The cooling
plate 51 includes a first steppedplane 51 a, and a second steppedplane 51 b lower than the first steppedplane 51 a. Theconnection member 40 performs the sliding movement along the second steppedplane 51 b. - Therefore, when the
sub door 30 is closed, theconnection member 40 performs the sliding movement relative to thesub door 30 and thus closes the second steppedplane 51 b, and when thesub door 30 is opened, theconnection member 40 performs the sliding movement relative to thesub door 30 and thus opens the second steppedplane 51 b. - The cooling
unit 50 further includes acold storage pack 52 containing a liquid material, the phase of which is changeable. - The liquid material, i.e., a cold storage material, is a liquid material, the phase of which is changeable. Alcohol, an aqueous sodium chloride solution, a chemical material containing polyethylene glycol or polyvinyl alcohol, or a mixture of the chemical material and water or alcohol may be used as the cold storage material. Further, a metal or a solid material having high specific heat and thermal conductivity may be used as the cold storage material.
- The
cold storage pack 52 is provided integrally with or separately from the coolingunit 50, and then is fixed to theframe 32. - Therefore, when the
sub door 30 is opened, if a stored article is placed on the rear surface of the openedsub door 30, the coolingunit 50 provided on thesub door 30 transmits cool air of the article placed on the rear surface of thesub door 30. - Further, when the
sub door 30 is closed, the coolingunit 50 lowers the temperature of theopening 21 of thedoor 20 which is relatively high, thereby achieving relatively uniform temperature distribution in the storage chamber and thus improving storage performance of the refrigerator. - Now, a manufacturing method of the sub door of the refrigerator in accordance with this embodiment will be described.
- First, the
frame 32 provided with the front andrear openings door 20 is prepared, thefront panel 33 forming the front surface of thesub door 30 is fixed to the edge of thefront opening 37 of theframe 32, the coolingunit 50 made of a material having a higher heat capacity than the injection molded product forming theframe 32 is fixed to therear opening 36 of theframe 32, and the inside of thesub door 30 formed by theframe 32, thefront panel 33, and thecooling unit 50 is filled with a foamed material so as to attach theframe 32, thefront panel 33, and thecooling unit 50 to each other by means of the foamed material. - Here, in order to reinforce the
sub door 30, a reinforcing member (not shown) may be provided at the inside of thesub door 30. - In order to fix the
front panel 33 to the edge of thefront opening 37 of theframe 32, thefront panel 33 is attached to the edge of thefront opening 37 using a double-sidedadhesive tape 62. Further, in order to fix thecooling unit 50 to therear opening 36 of theframe 32, the edge of the coolingunit 50 is attached to the edge of therear opening 36 using a double-sidedadhesive tape 61. - Here, in addition to the above double-sided
adhesive tapes front panel 33 and thecooling unit 50 to theframe 32. - Next, an opening and closing operation of the sub door of the refrigerator in accordance with this embodiment will be described with reference to
FIGS. 3 and 4 . - In the refrigerator in accordance with this embodiment, the
connection member 40 maintains a state of completely closing the second steppedplane 51 b under the condition that thesub door 30 is closed. Then, when thesub door 30 is opened, thesub door 30 is rotated downwardly using thehinge protrusions 31 a as a rotary axis. Here, theconnection member 40 is rotated using the rotatingprotrusions 43 as a rotary axis in connection with the rotation of thesub door 30. - Since the center of rotation of the
sub door 30 differs from the center of rotation of theconnection member 40, when thesub door 30 is opened, theconnection member 40 is rotated in connection with the rotation of thesub door 30 and thus performs a sliding movement in a direction of exposing the second steppedplane 51 b. - Thereafter, when the
sub door 30 continues to be rotated, the rear surface of thesub door 30 is located at a position higher than alower surface 21 b of theopening 21. At this time, theconnection member 40 is rotated at an angle of about 90 degrees about the rotatingprotrusions 43, and is located above thelower surface 21 b of theopening 21, thereby preventing a height difference between thesub door 30 and theopening 21. - Further, when the
sub door 30 is closed, theconnection member 40 is rotated in connection with the upward rotation of thesub door 30 and thus performs a sliding movement in a direction of closing the second steppedplane 51 b. Thereby, as shown inFIG. 3 , thesub door 30 closes theopening 21 under the condition that theconnection member 40 closes the second steppedplane 51 b. -
FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a refrigerator in accordance with another embodiment. - The embodiment of the present invention, as shown in
FIGS. 1 to 5 , illustrates a stand type kimchi refrigerator. On the other hand, the embodiment shown inFIG. 6 illustrates a side-by-side refrigerator in which amain body 100 is horizontally divided into storage chambers such that one storage chamber is used as a freezingchamber 110 and the other storage chamber is used as a refrigeratingchamber 120. As shown inFIG. 6 , the side-by-side refrigerator may also employ asub door 130 in accordance with the embodiment. - As is apparent from the above description, in a refrigerator having a sub door and a manufacturing method of the sub door in accordance with one embodiment, a cooling unit provided on the sub door transmits cool air of the cooling unit to a stored article put on the rear surface of the sub door, when the sub door is opened.
- Further, the cooling unit lowers the temperature of an opening of a main door which is relatively high, when the sub door is closed, thereby achieving relatively uniform temperature distribution in a storage chamber and thus improving storage performance of the refrigerator.
- Although a few embodiments have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.
Claims (7)
1. A refrigerator comprising:
a main body provided with storage chambers formed therein;
doors opening and closing the storage chambers, one of the doors being provided with an opening, the opening having at least one stepped plane;
a rack installed in the storage chamber at a height corresponding to that of the lower end of the opening;
a sub door to open and close the opening; and
a connection member to prevent a height difference between a rear surface of the sub door and the opening when the sub door is opened,
wherein the connection member is configured to slide relative to the sub door to cover the at least one stepped plane, whereby the connection member closes the at least one stepped plane when the sub door is closed, and opens the at least one stepped plane when the sub door is opened so that the rear surface of the sub door and the connection member form substantially a level plane with the rack, and thus an article placed on the rack is moved in a horizontal direction through the opening of the door and then placed on the rear surface of the sub door.
2. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the connection member slides on the rear surface of the sub door based on opening and closing of the sub door.
3. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the refrigerator is a kimchi refrigerator to store kimchi.
4. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the storage chambers provided in plural number are vertically divided from each other, and the sub door is provided on the door to open and close the upper storage chamber out of the plural storage chambers.
5. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the storage chambers provided in plural number are horizontally divided from each other, and the number of the doors is equal to the number of the storage chambers.
6. The refrigerator according to claim 1 , wherein the sub door has a thickness corresponding to a thickness of the doors when viewed from overhead.
7. A refrigerator comprising:
a main body provided with storage chambers formed therein;
doors opening and closing the storage chambers, one of the doors being provided with an opening, the opening having at least one stepped plane;
a rack installed in the storage chamber at a height corresponding to that of the lower end of the opening;
a sub door having a thickness corresponding to that of the doors so as to open and close the opening; and
a connection member to prevent a height difference between a rear surface of the sub door and the opening when the sub door is opened;
wherein the connection member is configured to slide relative to the sub door to cover the at least one stepped plane, whereby the connection member closes the at least one stepped plane when the sub door is closed, and opens the at least one stepped plane when the sub door is opened so that the rear surface of the sub door and the connection member form substantially a level plane with the rack.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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US14/083,002 US8851590B2 (en) | 2009-10-26 | 2013-11-18 | Refrigerator having sub door |
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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KR1020090101910A KR101737517B1 (en) | 2009-10-26 | 2009-10-26 | Refrigerator having sub door and sub door manufacturing method |
KR10-2009-0101910 | 2009-10-26 | ||
US12/805,918 US8607584B2 (en) | 2009-10-26 | 2010-08-24 | Refrigerator having sub door and manufacturing method of sub door |
US14/083,002 US8851590B2 (en) | 2009-10-26 | 2013-11-18 | Refrigerator having sub door |
Related Parent Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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US12/805,918 Continuation US8607584B2 (en) | 2009-10-26 | 2010-08-24 | Refrigerator having sub door and manufacturing method of sub door |
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Publication Number | Publication Date |
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US20140070688A1 true US20140070688A1 (en) | 2014-03-13 |
US8851590B2 US8851590B2 (en) | 2014-10-07 |
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US12/805,918 Active 2031-03-25 US8607584B2 (en) | 2009-10-26 | 2010-08-24 | Refrigerator having sub door and manufacturing method of sub door |
US14/083,002 Active US8851590B2 (en) | 2009-10-26 | 2013-11-18 | Refrigerator having sub door |
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Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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US12/805,918 Active 2031-03-25 US8607584B2 (en) | 2009-10-26 | 2010-08-24 | Refrigerator having sub door and manufacturing method of sub door |
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US11197655B2 (en) | 2016-10-13 | 2021-12-14 | Fujifilm Corporation | Ultrasound probe and method of manufacturing ultrasound probe |
Families Citing this family (14)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
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KR101737517B1 (en) * | 2009-10-26 | 2017-05-19 | 삼성전자주식회사 | Refrigerator having sub door and sub door manufacturing method |
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US20110094256A1 (en) | 2011-04-28 |
KR20110045362A (en) | 2011-05-04 |
US8851590B2 (en) | 2014-10-07 |
US8607584B2 (en) | 2013-12-17 |
KR101737517B1 (en) | 2017-05-19 |
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